A/N: Sorry for the late update! Please enjoy~ :)


Chapter 8: Sadness and Sorrow

Kero stared blankly at the area where his mistress had previously occupied. The others hadn't even realized she was gone yet. But there was something familiar about the residue magic he felt, it was almost similar to Clow Reed's. It couldn't be… Fei Wang Reed!

Kero's eyebrows creased in worry momentarily before he nodded determinedly, a habit he had picked up from Sakura, and floated over to the others. For now, she could survive on her own but they had to get to her quickly. Who knew what that jealous magician could and would do? Kero pondered about how to break the news to the group and finally decided on blunt honesty.

"Sakura was kidnapped just now." He stated. What Kero didn't expect was the reaction he got.

Kurogane (who obviously developed an affection towards the little girl although he would never admit it) was at the front and stopped so suddenly, Syaoran actually hit his nose on the ninja's back. Which was not a pleasant feeling considering how fit he was. Fai's eyes flickered to the area where he had last seen Sakura.

"How did she disappear?" He asked cautiously.

"A rip appeared in this dimension." Then he hesitantly added, "You wouldn't happen to know Fei Wang Reed would you?"

Immediately, all eyes riveted towards him. Kurogane clenched his fists tighter while Fai and Syaoran stared at him in shock. A tense silence hung in the air.

"Did you say… Fei Wang Reed?"

Kero nodded. "That's right. Do you know him?"

"Do you?"

A grim nod. "I had the displeasure of meeting him once."

"How does this lead to Sakura's disappearance?" Syaoran questioned; suspicion dawning on him.

"The one who kidnapped Sakura was Fei Wang Reed. If the rip in space isn't enough evidence; I can still sense his residue magical energy."

Once he finished explaining, Kero cast a worried glance over at Miyuki. She seemed to be frozen in shock with her mouth slightly open.

"Miyuki-san." He called gently. She snapped out of her trance and blinked at him. Kero took this as an initiative to continue speaking.

"Arigatou for your hospitality. But we need to move quickly if there is even a slight possibility of tracing the residue magic to his hiding place."

Miyuki nodded in understanding. Quickly, Mokona jumped onto her shoulder and gave her a kiss before bouncing back into Fai's arms.

Swirls of winds encompassed them with increasing speed as their host lifted her hand in a final goodbye. Within seconds, they were gone. The scenery around them altered to a space-like theme. Just ahead of them was a tiny pinprick of light. Kero squinted his tiny eyes as they drew nearer and were enveloped in a blinding brightness.


The sky was clear in Penguin Park as an odd group of teenagers watched the sky in anticipation. They had already been waiting for an hour or so and Tomoyo was staring to lose hope.

Suddenly, a large blob of the sky drooped down to the ground; twisting gently as it reached the ground. With a loud pop, its travelers tumbled to the ground. And with them was…

"Kero-chan!"

Kero's head snapped up. "Tomoyo-chan!"

He rushed over to the level-headed girl and hugged her with his tiny paws while thinking about how ironic it was that Sakura wasn't here the moment they returned home. "—Oh, the brat's here too."

Kurogane and Fai quickly came to the conclusion that this was the dimension Kero and Sakura had originally come from while Syaoran stared at his younger self. Kurogane glanced around the small group and with a start, saw himself looking at a younger version of Tomoyo-hime! Shaoran, sensing someone watching him, turned and met an intense pair of amber eyes, much like his own.

Finally, Shaoran broke the stare-down and glance back at Kero. "You're here; so where's Sakura?"

Worry could be heard in his voice, and seen, in the tenseness of his posture. Fai reckoned that this was Sakura's boyfriend, Shaoran. It wasn't hard to guess, considering that he was the spitting image of Syaoran. After a short pause, Kero answered his question.

"She was kidnapped."

In that one moment, Shaoran looked ready to kill. It was the calm before the storm. Shaoran's face turned carefully blank as Kero gulped nervously.

"Kidnapped?" he inquired calmly, "By who?"

Kero answered quickly. Instantly, he felt sorry for whoever would be the victim of Shaoran's anger; which would probably be him for getting Sakura in danger.

"Fei wang Reed. Clow Reed's brother."

Thankfully, Eriol cut in before Shaoran could speak. "You were trying to trace the residue magic?"

At Kero's affirmative nod, he continued. "I might have some information on him in my library."

"Library? I thought your old mansion was knocked down…" Tomoyo questionned; noticing the way the tall man stared at her.

"Hai. Another mansion was built near-by. I have already settle in. Let's go get Yue and we can go."

Shaoran silently fumed at all the interruptions and shot Kero a glare. He was promptly ignored. Eriol smiled at Shaoran before turning around and heading for the exit to Penguin Park. The Tsubasa group followed close behind.

Walking behind Shaoran, Kurogane couldn't help but compare the differences between the two. Shaoran had a quick temper, but cared about his girlfriend as much as Syaoran did to Sakura-hime. Soon, conversation started up between the two groups.

"I forgot to introduce you guys!" Kero exclaimed. "Everyone, this is Tomoyo-chan, Eriol-kun, Nakuru-san, Suppie, and the brat." He stated; gesturing to each respective person.

"It's nice to meet you." Tomoyo said politely. That's when she realized that the ninja was staring at her again. "Is something the matter?"

He shook his head; seeming at a loss for words.

"Is Kuro-pon getting emotional?" Fai spoke up in a teasing voice.

"Yeah! He's getting emotional!" Mokona cheered.

"Shut up!"

Kurogane swiped at the magician with his sword, trying to get a strike in while Fai danced out of the way. Syaoran relaxed in the presence of the familiar routine while Sakura-hime made quiet conversation with Tomoyo; not surprised to find that she and Sakura were best friends. Kurogane perked up slightly at that piece of information.

They eventually reached the amusement park, which was closed on that particular day. Eriol led them to the right and after about 10 minutes of walking, they stood in front of his newly built mansion.

"Please, make yourselves at home."


Meanwhile, in another dimension, Sakura blearily opened her eyes. The first thing she noticed was the ceiling; which wasn't surprising considering that she was lying on her back. Sakura glanced around the room. She was in an enclosed space with 4 walls surrounding her and no windows. The locked door was the only source of light and escape.

She tried moving her arms but realized that she was tied up. Next came the legs. Again, no success. Sakura finally sighed and settled for wiggling her fingers and toes to try and get some feeling in them; wondering if someone was going to come get her. She shuddered at the dark aura seemingly emitting from everywhere at once. It was like the building thrived on evil!

Seconds, minutes, or even hours could've passed and Sakura wouldn't have noticed. She was worried; about herself, her family, and friends. Soon, she heard light footsteps approaching. There was the sound of a key turning in the lock and Sakura tried to sit up.

Slowly, the door creaked open and a familiar face came into view. Sakura gasped. It was the girl from the bleachers! The girl stared blankly down at her, although Sakura could detect a faint hint of sadness in her chocolate eyes. Whether it was for herself or Sakura, she didn't know.

The girl untied her and gestured for her to follow. Then she stepped away. Sakura hurriedly scrambled to her feet and rushed to follow the receding back. Walking down the hall, she glanced around and noted that the opaque material that the walls were made off, or rather what everything was made off, was blank. There were no tender memories hanging from the walls or even any indication that anyone lived here.

The hallway seemed to be endless. Finally, they stopped in front of a double set of doors and the girl lifted her hands and knocked on the door.

"Come in." A deep voice boomed.

The girl pushed open the doors; leading her into a large room with a throne in the middle of the room. Sitting on it was a man the vaguely resembled Clow Reed. Maybe it was the nose, or the shape of his face, but it definitely was not his eyes. While Clow Reed's eye's had been warm and playful, this man had cold flecks of ice for his.

"Welcome to my home Sakura. My name is Fei wang Reed. You may leave now, Satsuki."

"Yes father." She responded obediently.

Sakura gaped in surprise. Father and daughter? Their relationship was more like master and slave! He hadn't even looked at Satsuki once throughout the entire process! The girl bowed to him and left.

Sakura immediately missed her presence; albeit a silent one but a comfort to her anyways.

"What do you want from me?" She asked tensely.

A menacing chuckle reverberated throughout the room.

"What I want from you? You misunderstand me… its nothing painful, don't worry."

His response was a glare.

"You'll have 2 parts in my plan. First of all, you'll be bait. After spending time with Sakura-hime and Syaoran, they will be sure to chase after you. After that, I'll be taking the power in you Sakura cards. So much power… I won't need the rest of the feathers anymore! I will get my wish. Something that not even Clow Reed could accomplish!"

With his speech done, he grinned down at the terrified girl.

"Satsuki! Take her away."

As if she were listening by the door, the girl entered and grabbed Sakura by the wrist. Sakura felt so relieved to get away from the insane man that she ignored the painful grip the girl had on her hand. A bruise was sure to form there later.

Satsuki lead Sakura down the winding hallway again. Soon, they stopped in front of a perfectly ordinary door; just like every other door they had seen so far. Sakura wondered how no one ever got lost in this maze of a mansion. Her attention refocused on Satsuki as she pushed the door open and gestured for her to go in.

Dolls. That was the sight that greeted her. Rows and rows of dolls; every shape, color, size… you name it, it was there. Sakura trembled slightly as she turned to meet Satsuki's dark eyes.

"Please… come in."

Sakura bit her lip worryingly as she crossed the threshold of the room. That was when the first doll moved.

A piercing scream split the silence.


A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger... and for the doll thing, I got that from Karin/Chibi vampire :D You know how the sister has a bunch of dolls in her room?

PLease Review! :)